Gender Differences in Leadership: Watch:
Sheryl Sandberg thank you! Such a wonderful moving, and honest
view of the gender disparity that continues to exist despite the forward
marching woman of today. Feminism is
often cast into a light of bra throwing, man hating tyrants while the majority
of us ladies are just trying to make it through the craziness of today. Gender disparity still exists despite the monumental
progress women have made in civil rights movements over the course of the last
hundred years. As Sandberg stated, women are in staggering delays when it comes
to career advancements with an alarming rate of only 13-16% holding corporate
and/or political power roles internationally! Of these women, just 1/3 of this
percentage are juggling the delicate balance of work and family. Her practical approach outlines strategies
for women to utilize in attempt to create a more gender balanced
workforce.
1.)
Sit at the
Table. I have never been the
woman to sit off to the side, and have happily assumed that I am welcome at any
table with which I sit. I was lucky to
be raised in a gender balanced church where I felt welcome to walk into my Senior
Pastor’s office without invitation nor announcement and ponder philosophical
questions aloud at a very young age. I continue this assumption even today as a
professional marching without schedule into my Administrator’s office for any
question, concern or idea I have to help improve our school. I have visited third world countries of male
dominating society and sat with male tribal leaders in Cambodia, Costa Rica,
Thailand and India as a welcomed collaborator for new school, church or ministry
planting. This is the beauty of the world we live in. Women ARE welcome to sit at the table, if
they so choose. It is, therefore,
Sandberg’s suggestion not that woman should feel welcome to sit at the
table, but rather, they are welcome (and encouraged) should they so
choose.
2.)
Make your
partner a real partner. Growing up, my parents set
the family bar high and modeled gender equality within our home. My mother worked as an accountant, my father
a near illiterate janitor. My father would
go to work as early as four o’clock in the morning, leaving my mother to care
for my brother and I before school. My father would meet us at the bus stop
after school, make us do the homework he couldn’t help with, and then prepare dinner
for the family. We would sit, family
style, around the table at 5:30 every day. My parents did not have much schooling
but recognized the need and they encouraged both my brother AND I to work hard
in our studies and made sure we both graduated college.
3.) Don’t leave before you leave.
I was married the year before I graduated college and felt my
parent’s disappointment and fear that I would not continue. They were right. I settled into the norm of my stereotypical role of wife and mother. Within 5 years, my husband was disabled and
could no longer work. I was pregnant with
our first child when our gender roles seriously flipped. I returned to school to finish the dream I
started years earlier, attending school at night while also working full time
teaching at our church’s private school. I took my final exam the day after my second
child was born. I have now been working
as the single income for my family with my husband, my equal partner as our
stay at home parent. I appreciated that
Sandberg mentioned the value of gender equality for stay at home dads as I have
watched my husband struggle with depression, loose friends and societal respect for his newfound position
as a disabled, “non-contributing” stay-at home father.
I dare to say that despite my ability to work and provide for my
family, it is more difficult for a woman to do so than a man. A woman working full time needs more breaks
than men for biological reasons. For
example, we use maternity as the starking and alarming rate of woman dropping
out of the career race. As she pointed
out, every mom, and I mean every mom has experienced the guilt stare of leaving
a toddler behind. But even more
upsetting is the unfriendly environmental conditions for new moms. Nursing rooms are nonexistence, and I found
myself pumping either in a bathroom stall, which is completely unsanitary, or in
my classroom between recess bells, which led to less milk production and awkward
scenarios. Woman who are not nursing, have monthly biological needs that men do not
think about and need more bathroom breaks. With little to no coverage, this can
result in an embarrassing situations for female employees. Because we “need more breaks” we are seen to
produce “less work” or take “longer on projects.”
It is situations like the ones I described that leave women
sharing the credit for their success. Did
I bust my butt through college? YES! But not without the financial sacrifice and
support of my parents. Do I work my tireless
hours at work? Yes, but not without that teacher next store willing to cover my
class when I need that extra break during
a routine date of the month. Do I
acknowledge the three female principals and newest Female Superintendent that I
currently work under for their individual success? Certainly, but not without
acknowledging the progress so many women before of us have made for this to
even be a possibility.
I disagree with Sandberg on one statement though, I do not believe
men are reaching for more opportunities than woman. I just believe it takes longer for woman to
reach the same opportunities as men. As an educator, the reward of my job is to
teach our young ladies to stand up and advocate for themselves. I do this in my work, ministry and as a girl
scout troop leader. I have watched too
many girls of varying cultures, being taught to sacrifice their dreams due to stereotypical
obligations. Teaching middle school most
of the girls that do not attend regularly are at home babysitting younger
siblings and or other family. I have
taught countless sibling pairs where parents are involved in the older brother’s
education and never attend a parent conference scheduled for their
daughter. Boys on average are encouraged
to obtain higher GPA’s whereas girls are excused with lower standards of
expectations. As the educational leaders of our current society, it is our role
to notice and speak up for the equal education rates for all of our students,
as this is where many of their careers end before they can begin.
Reference:
Why we have too few women leaders | Sheryl Sandberg
TED -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18uDutylDa4&feature=youtube
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